A global crisis calls for a globally-harmonized response. States must stand together and support each other to protect the health of people, ensure passengers are willing to travel again, and overcome the enormous economic and societal challenges on multiple fronts. Restoration of air connectivity is vital for millions of livelihoods and businesses that rely on cross-border travel, and so it is crucial for the recovery of the global economy. Collective engagement of States and industry serves as the main engine to navigate aviation through the course of restart, recovery and resilience. In this vein, ICAO reaffirms its commitment to providing support as required. 

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic sheds light on areas where improvement can or should be made. Lessons learnt from past and current efforts by all stakeholders fighting the pandemic further underscore the need for a systematic and programmatic risk management approach to mitigate its adverse impact on international air travel, including evaluation of measures and technologies to aid in decision making. States and international organizations should work towards a framework for the harmonization of test result certificates and for ensuring their validity. While the current crisis mobilizes the efforts of all stakeholders to address immediate challenges, it is equally important for States and industry to improve risk management and crisis preparedness to make post-COVID-19 aviation more sustainable and resilient. 

The COVID-19 pandemic is not only a health crisis, it is also an economic, social and humanitarian crisis. Considering the dramatic global economic and social impact that the crisis has engendered, the aviation system is standing on the doorstep of rapid transformation. Evaluation and understanding of these changes will serve to accurately position ICAO and all aviation stakeholders to prepare a proper response. 

Coming out of this crisis requires solidarity and deliberate attention to harmonized and flexible solutions for an expedited restart and recovery. The TOGD and ICAO Testing and Cross-Border Risk Management Measures Manual are “living” documents intended to be updated in accordance with the everevolving epidemiological situation. ICAO will make these updates on an ongoing basis and as appropriate, taking into account medical advancements (such as vaccines) and feedback from Member States in cooperation with international and regional organizations and industry. ICAO will continue to monitor and assess the evolving situation until it stabilizes, and will coordinate actions to lay a foundation for building resilience in the long run.